For Steve Zolotow, a professional gambler from Las Vegas, it was an extraordinarily expensive two-hour trip to Toronto: He flew in from New York, emptied 20 uncut diamonds from a bank’s safety deposit box and headed back to the airport for his return to New York.

At the airport, his diamonds, valued at nearly $1-million, were seized by customs for not being properly declared. This week, this 12-year legal battle to get them back ended.

In the argot of his trade, the house won.

I feel I have been grossly victimized. It was a total miscarriage of justice from start to finish

While losing is a professional hazard, he remains outraged over the decision.

“This was a governmental theft,” Mr. Zolotow told National Post. “Canada figured out a legal way to steal my diamonds and I had the pleasure of spending the weekend in a Toronto jail.”

Mr. Zolotow is something of an oddity in that he was a professional gambler long before such a thing became trendy. He was a regular at the Mayfair Club, a legendary New York card house that produced some of the world’s elite poker stars before it was shut down by authorities, and won two World Series of Poker bracelets.

His degrees in statistics and finance helped, but every gambler has highs and lows and it was during a high in 1993 that he bought the diamonds and during a low in 2000 that he came to Toronto to retrieve them.

“I was playing poker with a diamond dealer in New York and he told me what a good investment diamonds were and I ended up buying them,” said Mr. Zolotow.

“I was worried about the United States going all haywire and for a while I thought they were safer in Canada. I went up there and rented a safety deposit box at a bank in Toronto around 1994.”

On April 13, 2000, Mr. Zolotow returned to Toronto, arriving at Pearson airport on a flight from New York at about 11 a.m. He took a cab straight to a CIBC on St. Clair Avenue West, and retrieved the only thing in his bank box: 20 uncut diamonds, each wrapped in blue plastic.

Courtesy of Steve Zolotow

Diamonds pack a lot of value in a small space; the entire load could be held in one hand.

“They weren’t concealed in any way. They were in my pocket,” he said. His plan was to sell them back in New York to generate cash.

He was back at Pearson for his return flight by 1 p.m. but at the U.S. Customs station inside Toronto airport, he was asked what was in his pocket. He said diamonds.

He and his rocks were turned over to Canadian authorities and he was charged with attempted evasion of duties and keeping, acquiring or disposing of illegally imported goods.

The RCMP appraised the gems at $886,000, according to court documents.

The trouble for Mr. Zolotow was not so much how they left Canada but rather their arrival. The RCMP considered the diamonds forfeit for “failure to pay applicable duties and taxes upon entry into Canada.”

He hired Canadian lawyers to fight both the charges and the seizure. He won on the charges, which were stayed in 2002, but his claim for the diamonds went awry. His lawyers missed the 30-day deadline for filing an appeal, ruining his case.

He later sued his lawyers and won enough money to cover his legal costs from the ordeal, he said: “It put me about even,” on his expenses but not for the value of the gems.

Canada figured out a legal way to steal my diamonds and I had the pleasure of spending the weekend in a Toronto jail

Meanwhile, the government of Canada put the diamonds up for auction, selling them for just $250,225.

Mr. Zolotow sued the government, asking for his diamonds back or, at least, the money from their sale.

The case bounced from provincial court to federal court. There were motions and appeals. Like at the poker table, he won some and lost some.

Last week, Mr. Zolotow reached the end of his run when the Federal Court of Appeal rejected his request to have the case reconsidered. He was even ordered to pay the government its legal fees.

“Well, what can a poor dude do?” he told the National Post.

“I feel I have been grossly victimized. It was a total miscarriage of justice from start to finish. I’m listed now as a diamond smuggler.

“But I really have to rush off now — or I’ll be late for my table at day two of the World Series of Poker.”

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.